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Saturday, 27 July 2013

A few weeks ago Neil and I were lucky enough to be sent a free t-shirt each by the fun and unique brand QCumber. For once we were both able to pick an item which of course pleased Neil, I decided on a grey strawberry t-shirt and he went for a purple banana tee.

The first thing you notice (aside from the amazing vibrance of the fruit print) is the quality, unlike other t-shirts you can usually get in the price range they don't have that flimsy feeling to the fabric. Neil probably isn't aware of this fact (lazy sausage) but they wash well, hold their shape and the best part.... the edges don't curl!!!

I styled mine with a midi jersey skirt and cherry vans, Neil went for light denim jeans and co-ordinating socks.

I think once Winter is coming I will be treating myself to the Strawberry hat, how cute will it look wearing this doing the Manchester Christmas Markets!!?

Neil, myself and another friend are off out to a beach themed party tonight so I'm sure you will be updated of some more of our antics soon!

Sunday, 14 July 2013

As you'll probably already know, Michelle and I attended the last FABB Events bloggers meet in Manchester - #fabbbloggersmanc - hosted by the beautiful Ray and Tor. Although the goody bags and products in them were mainly geared towards women - my mum and sister have ransacked practically everything - I was pleasantly surprised to find I could spend the £30 ESPA gift card on myself!

I bought a Special Agent set - how cool does that sound? - which luckily for me was on offer for the special price of £28, down from £35.

With any purchase you were also able to choose four Star Performer samples.

I was drawn to the Special Agent set as I always find sets in general more appealing, and in this instance it seemed to cover all your grooming needs. Included in the set: Dual Action Shavemud (70ml), The Hydrator (35ml) and Energising Shower Gel (70ml). Now I've had a chance to try them out I've included a small review of each.

The Dual Action Shavemud is designed as a shaving cream that doubles as a deep cleansing mask. When applied to my skin it was clearly noticeable that there were cleansing qualities; shaving felt smooth and easy, and my skin was left feeling soft and hydrated, where other shaving creams and/or foam at times have left my face feeling dehydrated and tight.

To compliment the Dual Action Shavemud, the set also includes The Hydrator, which is a hydrating mens moisturiser. The cream was very light and a small amount covered my face easily. It left my skin feeling soft, supple and healthy. The only slight negative I felt was that The Hydrator lacked any Sun Protection Factor (SPF). Typically I opt for a moisturiser with SPF in order to give my skin that extra protection, and with weather like we're having at the moment some sort of SPF would be beneficial.

The Energising Shower Gel smells great, and its zesty fragrance made my shower that much more enjoyable. It lathered to create a soft cleansing foam that left my skin feeling clean yet not dry, which can all too often be an issue with mens shower gels or body washes.

Overall I was very impressed with the ESPA range and the quality of the luxury products. I'd suggest that they're definitely worth a try. However, my top pick would be the Dual Action Shavemud due to its versatility.

I hope you've enjoyed my first real beauty review - does that make me a fully-fledged beauty blogger now?

Saturday, 13 July 2013

Well Neil is out tonight and I'm in watching Supernatural and cuddling Dodge so it seems a perfect opportunity for me to do an update of what I've been up to. I've had quite a hectic week, I've been accepted for a stall at Manchester Markets so have been deciding whether I can afford a stall on the Christmas one, I've decided to go for it so just have to hope they can fit me in. I have also been making lots of new products as well as my usual orders.

Do you like the mirrors? I hope they will be a nice gift for people that like my products but wouldn't necessarily wear jewellery.

I've also started a Kickstarter page, it's a great idea and I would recommend any small business owners to give it a go.

Finally I did a jewellery party on Friday evening, I dragged Neil along of course. If anyone is in the Manchester area and is interested feel free to get in contact about hosting one.

Thursday, 11 July 2013

So in my FABB write up I mentioned La Moda, who was one of the amazing brands at the event, well I was lucky enough to be given a bag by them so thought I would do a quick review.

I had heard of La Moda before, and knew they did affordable satchels, however I was always a bit skeptical of the quality because of the amazing price. However once seeing the brilliant quality of all the items displayed on their FABB stand and experiencing for myself first hand with my new Willow Turquoise bag I can happily say quality is not something you need to worry about.

Dodge clearly loves the bag so much she had to sit next to it (and refuse to move)

I've made myself a bit of a wishlist of items I want to get for myself or as gifts for upcoming birthdays. What do you all think, do you have a favourite?

Tuesday, 9 July 2013

"In West Philadelphia born and raised..." - if you didn't start singing along there's something wrong with you ; p

Anyway, it could be said that Michelle and I kind of love a themed party. We always seem to make an extra effort, especially at Pop Bubble Rock (PBR) nights where we like to get dressed up, have a drink and bust a move. Previously we've attended Prom, Pirate and School Disco themed nights.

This time the theme was 'Will Smith is F***ing Awesome' - excuse the language - and that's pretty much all I need to say. Michelle decided that this theme was a little out of her reach and instead decided to just style it out with her amazing Batman dress from Vintage by Cupcake.

Michelle and our friend Schmidt!

I got a little too excited, and as luck would have it I'd picked out a tee from Tompan for my birthday that I knew would be perfect for a Fresh Prince inspired look. I also saw a snapback cap in Primark that added the finishing touch. Oh and for accessories I wore my new Disney watch and some glow sticks - yes they are COOL!

Me, Michelle and our friend Spanky.

The night was definitely fun and I certainly enjoyed myself - as you can clearly see.

Monday, 8 July 2013

I decided to make the most out of this glorious weather by treating Dodge to a trip to Heaton Park. Anyone who isn't from the North West this is a ginormous park that has separate sections such as a Boating Lake and Animal Farm, and regularly hosts big events such as Parklife.

Poor Dodge could only last about an hour due to the heat and she kept slumping in the shade needing a rest, much to the annoyance of the local animals who weren't impressed with her grunting/panting.

To finish off the little trip I had an ice-cream and got Dodge a water - if anyone from Heaton Park reads this a few bowls of water scattered about would have gone down a treat!

(Don't worry the pigeon feathers had nothing to do with Dodge - wasn't her helping herself to a bit of lunch)

Does anyone in the Manchester area have any suggestions of local dog friendly parks? Have you been to Heaton Park recently?

Sunday, 7 July 2013

So Neil and I attended our first blogging event this weekend, arranged by FABB Events it was situated within our favourite part of Manchester, the Northern Quarter. Luckily for us we know this area well so we knew the best places to go for a pre-blogger drink. We decided on Thomas Bar for some Dutch courage in the form of Rose Wine. Despite us knowing our way around we still go a bit lost finding the venue, but we made it in the end.

I'm sorry to say we didn't take any photos during the actual event, I had high hopes for myself but in the end the heat and shyness took its toll and we ended up with an empty memory card. We however met some lovely people, and despite us being slightly apprehensive as we didn't know anyone and people already seemed to have their own little groups we tried our best to socialise.
The event had some lovely brands promoting themselves, a personal favourite was La Moda (will be doing a separate post on them later on though) but the rest were all informative and friendly. All the brands also gave us products and goody bags too, which of course went down well - poor Neil didn't get many male options but I'm sure his sister and mum won't mind helping themselves to his leftovers.

Other Bloggers who attended may notice I've missed out the Jelly Button goody bag in my photo, this is because I made it and decided to give the spare one that was in my bag to an adorable waitress we later talked to in Terrace NQ, where Neil satisfied his hunger with the most delicious looking burger ever (I'm trying to avoid wheat so supped my wine instead.)

Dodge photobombed so decided to make her a feature ;)

So despite spending the day awkwardly swishing my giant swing dress to create a breeze in the stiffling basement room I had a FABB (hehe get it??) time, and am already looking forward to my next event. This leads on to the idea that I want to arrange some sort of meal/drink/meet up for some local bloggers... if anyone wants to help me or is already sorting one let me know!

If you were there what did you think of the event? Did you spot myself and Neil, and did you take any sneaky photos of us?

Saturday, 6 July 2013

It's competition time again guys and this time we've been lucky enough to collaborate with the fab ATW Clothing Co. Their sleek and simple style makes this brand a definite trend setter. With an element of sports chic and a stylised script logo, the brand seems taps in to an almost pop punk street style that's highly wearable and definitely fashionable. A hit in the extreme sports and music scene, you'll definitely look the part sporting their gear, and it's clear to see why they were awarded USH clothing brand of the year 2012.

Thursday, 4 July 2013

Okay so where was I up to... oh! After we got back from Disney we were knackered so we decided to indulge ourselves with a glass of wine in the hotel bar before bed. The next morning we were up bright and early, and we had breakfast in the hotel. After some scrummy pastries we headed out to Mairie de Clichy, which was our nearest metro station, less that 10 minute walk away.

The first place we headed was the Arc de Triomphe. Thankfully the weather seemed to be in our favour and we were blessed with glorious sunshine and blue skies - note the shorts! We didn't manage to make it over to stand beneath the Arc - too much traffic - and instead we headed off in search of the Eiffel Tower.

We managed to find a little bridge where we able to take a few snaps of the Seine with the Eiffel Tower in the background. It made a nice change not having to queue to take a photograph like at Disney.

When we made it to the base of the Eiffel Tower we thought we were in luck as the crowds seemed to be very few and far between - foolish of us! On closer inspection we noticed that the ticket offices seemed to be closed and then we noticed the sign 'Closed due to strike action. Thank you for your comprehension.' I'm guessing they meant understanding? Either way we were devastated and vowed to return the following day in hopes that we'd be able to make it to the top!

After working up an appetite we stopped for a snack along the Avenue des Champs Elysees. From there we leisurely strolled down towards the Musée du Louvre. The Louvre itself was monumental; its sheer size and scale took us both a little aback and it seemed more complicated to navigate than the metro!

As we bumbled around we'd gradually notice a hosts of people huddling around certain artefact; each time we wondered whether we had finally found the Mona Lisa. Most of the time it wasn't the case but it was still fun wandering around and taking in the sights.

Eventually we found the elusive Mona Lisa, yet only I braved the maelstrom of bodies, cameras and iPads to take a closer look. Ideally I'd have loved the chance to go closer and take a studied view but the wire border and bullet proof glass case made that a little difficult.

After the Louvre we headed to Notre Dame. The cathedral is definitely a spectacular building, but the most peculiar thing was an odd masked man that seemed to be entertaining the crowds by scaring unwitting tourist half to death - we kept our distance!

After having a stopping for a drink in a local cafe we headed over to the Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, which is a lovely church. Honestly it was nice to just take a moment to relax and take in the ambience.

Off on our travels again, we had a lovely stroll past the Palais du Luxembourg and took in the beauty of the gardens there. The sight of children sending small toy sailboats across the water was so cute and quaint.

In the evening we headed back, got changed and then went back to the Eiffel Towerwhere we indulged in a rather expensive meal along the front. €32 for a rump steak was definitely pricy but we thought that we deserved something a little special; although frankly the food was just nice when we expected something more - you live and learn I guess.

On our final day we headed back to the Eiffel Tower. Thankfully the strike was over and it was back up and running. The annoying thing was that it decided to rain, but with umbrellas in hand we were determined to make it to the top! As luck would have it by the time we'd got our ticket and made it to the lift the weather had changed and the sun was out.

We took some snaps, grabbed a quick snack from one of the vendors at the bottom and then rushed back to the hotel. We were a little late for check out but the staff were lovely and very accommodating. With suitcases packed we then began the long journey home, and we touched down mid afternoon on Thursday.

Our holiday in Paris was the epitome of a whistle stop tour but it was well worth it, and I couldn't think of anyone I'd prefer to go with than Michelle.

Neil xp.s. I did try and take more photos of Michelle but she's not that kind of person; clearly I am - aha!